The End of Reality
by Marty and the Moon
Summary: There was one person who wanted to kill a child. Not just any child, a baby. Young, still with the round cheeks and the doe eyes attributed to babies. He wasn’t even a year old and he was the target of one mans dark crusade.DM/HG Warning:violence/language
1. Chapter 1

THE END OF REALITY

Ship: HG/DM

Chapter One: A Prisoners Testament

There's something terrible, practically forbidden, when the idea of a child's death enters common conversation. It could be the headlines on the Daily Prophet, spread over every page, and still people will only talk in hushed whispers about it. It's a child; even the nastiest gossiper's lips become tight when someone asks. It's not like the death of an older man, mugged in knock turn alley. It's not like the Dark Lords raid on a small town close to Yorkshire.

Children have a potential, even their smallest actions can change the world. They could grow up to be the best of us all, saviors… Or they could grow up twisted, and cause the end of what we all know. But either way, they have potential, and somehow, ending that future… It simply wasn't allowed in society. The darkest circles of hell were reserved for people who killed a child.

They were innocent, they had no side. They didn't do anything terrible, they were like the angels that god had given to grace this earth for a few years; even the teenagers that you heard most parents go on and on about, they still had that same sphere around them as the children. Innocent and in a world that seems like it can't hurt them, they were what most people would die to protect.

But there was one person who wanted to kill a child. Not just any child, a baby. Young, still with the round cheeks and the doe eyes attributed to babies. He wasn't even a year old and he was the target of one mans dark crusade. What kind of monster would want to kill an innocent baby, you ask? Well his name was Tom Riddle, and he saw himself on a crusade to rid the world of the scum known as Muggles.

You probably don't even know what that word means, but to put it short there are things such as wizards. Some wizards have been in families made of wizards since the beginning of time. But occasionally a wizard will marry a non-wizard, also called a Muggle. The children of such bonds were called half-bloods. And then, every once in a while, two Muggles would bear a child that was a wizard. And these, to purebloods, were dirty people who didn't deserve to have the gift of wizardry. Mudbloods they were called; a dirty word for believed dirty people.

And Riddle, he saw himself on a quest to rid the world of the Muggles, and Mudbloods, anyone who was unworthy of being a wizard. But then again, why did one baby have to be drawn into this Dark Crusade? What did he have to do with this? I'm not even sure if I know. It's still a half mystery to me.

At his birth someone made a prediction, Trelawny. Just a few short words, and his life had been put in permanent danger. I never put much stock in people trying to tell the future, people thought she was right though, the prediction came true. But what I would like to ask those people is, did the prediction come true, or did the prediction cause his future to change? Without it he probably would have been just a regular kid, with a bike and a broom and a nice family. He would have grown up to go to Hogwarts, a wizarding school, and then get married to a witch and live a long happy life.

Riddle didn't care about those details though; he became obsessed with the death of this child, this baby. He used a friend of the parents to find the house. And once he found it he went in and killed the parents quickly. It took only a moment or two and all that showed the passing of their lives was a sinister whisper and two green flashes. And then he walked over to the crib where baby Potter was resting.

"Harry, little Harry. A child like you would have no chance against one as powerful as me. How that fool Trelawny could think you would beat me?" He scoffed a cold laugh echoing through the silent house. Harry looked up at him with huge green eyes, his stomach growled hungrily and he started to cry out for his mother and her milk. No one heard his screams though, and Riddle soon became annoyed with the continuing noise. He raised his wand and whispered the curse that would end the child's life, a sickening grin on his thin, snakelike face.

But something went wrong that night. Instead of the life that was supposed to be taken, another one was given. The child's life was put on a different course completely, one that no one would ever voluntarily choose unless they were insane. Voldemort fled from the house, what was left of him anyway, and the baby was rescued by a very large man by the name of Hagrid. And that was beginning of one of the biggest wars the wizarding world had ever seen. Not a single wizard house had gone un-ravaged, and for a few months the war had even transferred to the Muggle world massacres happening all over England.

Harry grew up to be a great man, though many still treated him like a boy. At seventeen he was everything the wizarding world could ever hope for in a hero. He was strong, courageous, determined, and would give anything to restore peace to the wizarding world. But not everything actually, through the entire war he never killed a single person. He never used an unforgivable curse; he told me so just the night before. Even when Voldemort was an inch from him and he had his wand ready for it, he still didn't kill him.

At first I was angry, I wish he had. But I had a long time to think about it, and now I think he still did the right thing. I would hate to see Harry turned a murder. After everything that had happened to him, more guilt was the last thing he needed. He gave everything to the wizarding world that he ever had, and still they expected more form him. They still expected him to give everything to them, his life, his love, his soul. He was born to protect them; at least that's the way they saw it. Soon he was turned to their way of thinking, and he nearly worked himself to death looking for Riddle. It nearly killed me to watch him like that. Turned into a possessed man with the one goal of doing what he felt was right.

It strange what kinds of thoughts enter your head when you think you're going to die. Or maybe I didn't think I was going to die. No I wasn't going to die, not yet. They were going to have fun with me first. The little mudblood bookworm had been caught, being foolish, of course. I heard another scream from whatever dark hole they had shoved me in, and a brief flash of images of people I knew flashed threw my brain. I wondered if it was anyone I knew. The scream echoed around me and I clawed at the stone to my side. I heard another scream and knew that Riddle had someone else up there, someone probably whimpering on the floor begging for mercy.

I was never sorry about my decision on which side I chose. I still thought I had joined the right side. Even now, soaked through and shivering in some dark corner in the dungeons of Malfoy manner, I knew I would always stand beside him. Nothing the Malfoys or any other minion of Riddle would ever make me change my mind, no matter what they did to me. I would always stay faithful to him, our bond was stronger than blood. Ron, Harry and Me, I knew even death couldn't keep us apart. That may sound sappy like some weird love story to you, but we weren't like that with each other. Sure everyone thought me and Ron quarreled like lovers, but we didn't. I was simply a younger sister to him and we fought, much like he and Ginny would.

Ginny. I wondered if she was still alive. Some small part of me saw her living through this, marrying Harry. I saw a vision of the two of them in a white picket fenced house with a mass of kids running around them laughing and playing; the two youngest pulling on each others hair and squalling. A sob escaped my thought as the image was swallowed up by darkness.

Ron wasn't in the picture; he never could be the uncle that I knew he wanted to be. He would have been perfect at the job, but he had been killed a week ago. He had been tortured for hours first, and when we got there to save him, he was only a few minutes away from death. He never told them anything though. He had stayed silent till the end, not willing to give the wankers the satisfaction of his screams. I saw the deep bite marks in his cheeks and lips where he would have bitten to stop the screams brought on by the cruciatous curse.

I had watched as his blue eyes had faded, and lost their fire. I had screamed and beet his chest begging for him to come back, for him to not fucking leave me, leave us. I called him a wanker and a multitude of other insults. I was vaguely aware of harry crying silently in the background while Remus had walked forward and had wrapped his arms around me as I screamed.

After that, I wasn't sure if we'd win. Harry seemed to shut down, his green eyes turning black, with the guilt that I knew was coursing through his system like some slow poison. That's what had pushed me to come here alone. I was blinded by the hate coursing through my system. I knew that Harry was suffering even more after Riddle's latest move. The looks of pain I had seen over the years on Harry's face switched threw my mind like a slideshow in fast forward. Some of guilt, some of fear, some of anger, some of agonizingly slow pain as he heard of another death, another attack. One more thing he never had a chance of stopping.

And I had used those to guide me to the Malfoy estate, and I had entered the house, silently. I had entered the chamber of Lucius Malfoy. And while he lay in bed I raised my wand to kill him. He was the one, the one who had laughed as Ron faded away, before he apparated out. Like the coward I knew he was beneath his Death Eaters' mask. I was ready to kill him, but then his wife had come in. Narcissa had stared at me, her eyes cold and calculating. And in slow motion she walked forward to stand in front of my wand arm.

"I can't let you kill him," She said defiantly crossing her arms and standing as stiff as a board.

"Get out of the way. Don't be a fool Narcissa! He deserves to die." I whispered as loud as I dared with Lucius only a foot away.

"No! I won't let you! I love him, and I can't let you kill him!" I froze at Mrs. Malfoys confession. I knew now, that I was as good as dead. I couldn't do it, couldn't kill the man, with his loving wife standing in front of him, ready to die for him. I sighed and lowered my wand looking down at the floor defeated.

"He doesn't deserve you. He doesn't deserve someone who loves him." Narcissa sighed, now content with the fact her husband wouldn't die. She jumped though as she heard a gasp behind her. Narcissa turned and smiled as she saw Lucius starring at me.

"Look who I caught Lucius." She purred pulling the wand out of my hand and sitting beside him on the bed. She looked at him adoringly and handed him my wand. I blanched as I saw the look of servitude on her face. How could she so willingly follow a monster like that?

He stood up quickly pulling on robes, grinning the whole time. I stood frozen at the spot, my eyes never leaving Narcissa. I couldn't understand, I don't think I ever would. But then he came over and stunned me, and suddenly my world had gone black… And then I was here. I don't know how long I had been here, less than a day for sure. But then again, it was impossible to be sure in this constant dark.

It had been at least a few hours that was probably why my brain had gone on the trip down memory lane; it had nothing else to think about anymore. Just when I thought I would go mad from this insane stillness of this little hole I heard a click and then light flooded the area and I shut my eyes tight to ward off the assault. I heard a sick laugh before the light was blocked out by someone's body. I looked up into the black beady eyes of Belatrix Lestrange.

"Oh what a good catch Lucius. The master'll be pleased." She said grinning and looking me over. "You'll be screaming for mercy mudblood." She cackled throwing her head back. I sighed tiredly, shaking my head quite bored with her already.

"The only reason I would scream for mercy Bella would be because I had to look at your ugly mug. Now why don't you do us both a favor and get the fuck out of my face?" My voice had turned acidic toward the end and Belatrix looked surprised that I wasn't already on my knees pleading to be let go.

"Noble words for a prisoner Mudblood. I'm sure you wont be so noble come tomorrow." Said Lucius stepping out from behind Belatrix.

"Oi, don't you look all posh Malfoy. Proud of yourself for catching an unarmed woman who just happened to have snuck into your bedroom when you were asleep? Honestly if I wanted it, you and your wife would be dead, and I would be gone. And trust me, I doubt Tom would have wept long over your loss. Your space would be filled quickly Mr. Malfoy, you are not all that special." I said standing up easily, not actually being hurt before this I wasn't actually that put out. Just simply without a wand is all.

Lucius stepped forward quickly and slapped me across the face. My head was shoved back colliding with the wall with a crack. "How dare you speak the Dark Lord's name?!"

"Calm yourself Lucius. The Dark Lord would not want her damaged. He wants to have fun with her, remember?" Belatrix smirked looking down condescendingly at me, but after that unconsciousness took over and everything turned black.


	2. Chapter 2

THE END OF REALITY

Ship: HG/DM

Chapter Two: Barely Breathing

I wasn't sure how long I had been out of it, but I was sure that I would not recommend getting woken up like that again. The door of my room had burst open and I had been drug to a standing position by my hair. I had squawked and instinctually grabbed my attacker's wrist, digging my fingernails into the soft skin of his wrist. In reply he started shaking me back and forth violently by my head and I was sure my neck would break. It didn't though and whoever it was let me go, wiping his hands off on his pants as if he had touched something dirty.

Actually I probably _was_ filthy. I hadn't showered since I had gotten down here, and I could feel a slow trickle of blood going down the back of my neck. Apparently, when I had been shaken my wound had split open from hitting the wall. I promised myself under my breath that next time I would kill Lucius for sure, no matter if his dumb little wife was there to protect him.

There was a cold bark of laughter behind me and I remembered the man who had barged in. I turned to see who it was and immediately lunged forward to try to tare his face off. It was the traitor, Snape. I screamed and leaped forward clawing at water ever I could reach and it took him a few minutes to grab my wrists and stop me from attacking his face and neck. I continued moving though, trying to kick him, and for my trouble he kneed me in the stomach.

I coughed, and bile rose in my throat. I had to swallow it back down and was reminded by the fact that I hadn't eaten since I had gotten here, my stomach gave a protesting growl at that moment but it was covered up by the cold, pretentious laughing of one Malfoy Junior. "Can't you handle one little mudblood Snape?"

"Did you bring the food or not? Because the Dark Lord is itching for another chance to-"

"Yeah I brought it, keep your cloak on. I don't understand why we should feed her anyways. Let her starve, if we're lucky she might die." He said in his normal way bringing over a small bag and dropping it on the floor in front of us, and I realized Snape still had a hold on my wrists. I wrenched away and backed off quickly, stopping as the wall touched my back.

"Because, the Dark Lord wants her in good condition when he interrogates her." Draco smiled as he was reminded if why I was there in the first place and he looked me over coolly. For some reason I felt like a piece of meat in the market being evaluated for purchase.

"Scared, Granger?" He smirked, arching one delicate eyebrow.

"Not of you ferret." I replied defiantly, I wasn't going to let him get the best of me here. I may have been down but one thing they could not take from me was my pride. He jumped forward but was restrained by Snape's hand around his wrist.

"Calm yourself Draco. Remember what he said. He doesn't want her damaged." Snape said, and Malfoy nodded stepping back to his side and his face went cold again, but he continued glaring at me through his moon over the water eyes.

"Ha! Like I'd believe that load of garbage. Besides, Senior already made sure that that goal was impossible." I pointed out gesturing towards my blood stained hair.

"Yes, we know about that. The Dark Lord punished Lucius accordingly. And that is why we were scent to retrieve you instead. He didn't want Bella and Lucius loosing their temper with you again," Snape supplied the answer seeing as Draco was still to angry with her. Good he deserved more than just a simple insult.

"You can keep lying, but I'm not going to believe you. Nor am I going to eat whatever is in that bag. It could be drugged or something. Poison, something to knock me out, or maybe he made you mix up something to dull my magic."

"Now Granger, you're more intelligent than that. If he wanted to knock you out than why would I come in here and wake you up? And If I wanted to kill you a simple _Advada Kedavra_ would do it."

"And my magic?"

"You foolish girl!" Snape snarled, loosing his patience and grabbing the bag off the floor. The truth was I was starving, but I wasn't about to eat something if I didn't know what it would do. To my surprised Snape took out a hunk of cheese form the bag and bit into it, chewing and swallowing precisely. "There, are you satisfied? I would not eat if it would affect my magic. Now will you eat so I don't get beaten for it."

I was sorely tempted to refuse to eat just so Snape would get what he had coming but my stomach gave another loud protest, causing me to blush and jump forward, grabbing the bag from his hand. I ate slowly, careful that the next bite I would take wouldn't make me double over with pain or make my magic disappear. Even if I didn't have my wand I felt it underneath the turmoil of my thoughts. If I needed it wand less magic would certainly do the trick.

"Is she done yet? Honestly, there isn't that much food, it shouldn't take this long."

"I'm trying not to make my self sick, Malfoy. Eating to much to quickly after being starved for God knows how long would make my stomach ache and I may not be able to keep down this meager amount you call a meal."

"You seem awfully upset about getting sick."

"If you didn't notice it would sort of make a mess."

"How could you tell with the filth you're already covered in?" Draco smirked back as her eyes went wide, and her nails dug into her palms in anger.

"If you didn't notice Malfoy I wasn't exactly supplied with the normal niceties that one could bathe in. I haven't exactly had a chance to clean up."

"Oh yeah, I didn't notice. I thought you always looked like that."

"Why you little!" I shrieked jumping up to strangle the beast, but was caught around the waist and deposited back on the bed quickly by Snape.

"Draco you're acting like a child. Now it's time we go upstairs, Granger." He addressed me before turning quickly and heading towards the door. Draco followed but they both paused when the realized I wasn't coming.

"What? You think I'd actually come along with you calmly. You're practically escorting me to my death. Why would I go with you?"

"I assure you, Miss Granger, he will not kill you. Not _yet._"

"As if I'd trust- Hey, put me down!" I shrieked as Snape walked over swiftly, grabbed my arm and hung me over his shoulder. I could say in all honesty this was the most embarrassed I had been in my life. I bumped along like a sack of potatoes as we went up what I thought was stairs. I couldn't see anything, Snape's black covered back being the only thing in my site.

I beat on his back but it was no use, and I discovered it only made Malfoy's smirk more prominent as I tried to get out of Snape's death grip. I realized, with cold anger that tears were leaking out of my eyes. How could I be so easily overpowered? I was being treated like a piece of furniture, and all the respect that I had earned my entire life was worth mud. I was worth mud. And soon I'd probably be in the ground surrounded by mud. My pride, my thoughts, and everything else no longer were mine and no longer existed.

I heard others laugh as I was carried into what I think was a ballroom and then thrown hard onto the ground. I yelped and stood up quickly; adjusting my school uniform to make sure I wasn't exposing anything to this group of dirty human beings.

"Severus, I clearly remember telling you not to harm the girl," A cold voice whispered from a black throne in front of me. It crept up my spine and caused me to shiver involuntarily as I recognized the speaker. Lord Voldemort.

"It was the only way I could get her up here without harming her master. I am sorry." Snape said submitting to the wizard, and bowing low enough for his abnormally large nose to touch the ground. I twisted my head a bit to see Draco was in a similar pose, but the look on his face gave away that he'd rather be anywhere else.

"I apologize miss… Granger. I told them to not to treat you too roughly."

"I don't see why. You'll do much worse to me soon enough." She said grinding the tears from the corner of her eyes with the heel of her palm. The gathered death eaters gasped at my daring and a few surged forward angrily, but Voldemort waved them away idly. It seemed he had expected this action from me. Well that was good, cause there was no way I was going to make anything about this easy for him.

"You'll be pleased to know that I punished Lucius for his treatment of you. Belatrix told me immediately that he had hit you and I assure you, his punishment will keep him from repeating the act again."

"And I suppose she also told you that she almost did much worse to me? No? Hm, what a shame her own skin comes before her loyalty to you." I said skeptically arching and eyebrow and trying to brush off the grime that had gathered on the sleeve of my shirt.

Voldemort's eyes turned cold and they darted over to his left, where I assumed Belatrix was standing. "Regretfully she can have a short temper sometimes, but I am teaching her to control it. Now let's see if I can't fix you up a little."

He swished his wand before I could protest and I felt the tingle of magic cut across the cut in my head, sealing it up. He did another flourish with his wand and I yelped as the sting of a cleaning spell scraped across my skin. I straightened my clothes again, and reached up to find the blood was out of my hair.

I combed my hair with my fingers for a second, not really sure why I was worried about my appearance in front of these people, but I knew I didn't want them to have a chance for their beliefs to be found true in me. Mudbloods weren't animals and I was sure going to prove that. And I was also going to prove exactly how ballsy we could be.

"Thanks Tom. I appreciate it. Now maybe you give me a wand so I can kill that pathetic slime that is the Malfoy line and then shove it down your scrawny little throat?" I smiled up sweetly at him and the congregation leaned forward eagerly, to watch my punishment. But instead of the anger I had been waiting for Voldemort threw his head back and laughed.

It was not a warm laughed and it caused me, along with the Death Eaters, to shiver and take a step back automatically. Nothing resembling real laughter could ever come out of this animal and it suddenly made Hermione want to be sick to her stomach. She refused the impulse though, holding onto the meager meal she had been given before.

Voldemort stopped laughing and returned his gaze to me, I wish, regretfully, that he continued laughing. It would make it easier on me, but of course, that was not his goal.

"Severus said you would be difficult, and of course you did not disappoint. I will enjoy getting you to talk." He grinned, showing sharp pointy teeth, which made his inhuman face warp even more. I stopped my self from taking a step backwards and glared up at him.

"That won't happen. So let me save you the trouble. You talk, a long monologue lasting for hours where we all sit bored out of our minds; you torture me finally, saying you're bored but really you're just frustrated that I'm not co-operating, and then, guess what? Harry will come, and he will destroy you. And your pathetic, magic held body, will disintegrate into dust." I smiled as I saw his snake eyes narrow and glare at her.

"You are foolish. Potter is a pathetic little boy, and he will do nothing to stop me. He is lost without you and the Weasley boy, and without Dumbledore to help him, he will fall."

"Not a man? And what do you call the people around you? Do you call those who snivel, and snipe, and run in fear men? Those who cower and jump at ever noise? Just because they kill does not make them men. It makes them weak, just like you. Harry is more of a man than you will ever be. He knows what it takes to serve others more than yourself, he knows what sacrifice is like. You are pathetic compared to him."

"Sacrifice? I have sacrificed more than that boy ever could! Look at me, I am not man! I am something else, something I had to sacrifice to be!"

"You did it for yourself, not for anyone else! That is not sacrifice!"

"Silence! I will not be talked to like this! You know nothing mudblood! You will never understand!"

"What? Will never understand? I don't see how a measly half-blood is all that different from me! Seems a little bit twisted Tom!" It appeared that I had finally taken Lord Voldemort past his limit as he quickly brought up his wand and sent out a wave of magic towards me.

I didn't even have time to scream as the pain touched every nerve in my body. I stood still, trying to close off the pain, but it shocked through my fingers and toes, tracing over my skin like fire. I bit my cheek to keep myself conscious and standing. I kept repeating the words "I will not scream" in my head like a mantra. After what felt like an hour he stopped and I opened my mouth, collapsing to my knees, and gulping in a lungful of air. I hadn't seemed to breathe during the entire period of torture. I guess that was part of trying not to scream.

He laughed again and told Snape to return me to my room, but I wasn't paying attention. I remembered being grabbed by the arm and walking, well more like falling quickly and multiple times, Snape's grip holding me up, as we returned to the room in the basement. I collapsed in the corner and I think I mumbled "bastard," under my breath. And I wasn't sure if I heard and "I know," In reply. It was probably just my head talking to fill up the silence. I fell into sleep and thankfully there were no dreams this time. Everything was just numb.


End file.
